Feeler mechanism for looms



Sept. 11, 1934. A. E. BENSON FEELER MECHANISM FOR LOOMS Filed Oct. 25, 1935 /NVENTOR BY@ i ATTORNY Patented Sept. 11, 1934 rara-NT orgies This invention relates to feeler mechanisms for looms, whereby the operative condition of the loom is changed prior to complete exhaustion of n filling.

The amount of waste incident to the use of feeler mechanisms in looms depends upon the amount of filling remaining upon the bobbin or iilling carrier when the latter is ejected on call for replenishment by the feeler mechanism. The amount will depend directly upon the feeler mechanism which should detect with accuracy either the presence of a working supply of filling, or its substantial exhaustion and call for a change of filling only when the filling has been depleted to a predetermined amount.

One of the objects of the present invention is to provide a feeler mechanism of the side slipping type which will accurately respond to either the presence of a working supply of filling in the shuttle or its substantial depletion, and call for a change only when substantial exhaustion exists.

One of the important features of the present invention consists in a feeler mechanism of side slipping typ-e wherein the feeler has a heel portion and a iilling engaging end, the former being under the influence of feeler controlling means which serves to return the feeler to its rearward filling position after having been displaced frontwardly and one or" the parts thereof may act as a fulcrum for the feeler when it partakes of its side slipping movement. Y v

More substantially stated the heel of the feeler is provided with inclined portions which diverge rearwardly and are respectively engaged by feeler controlling members which under thevinfiuence of yielding means serve to move the feeler into its rearward feeling position and permit side slipping movement of the feeler about one of said feeler controlling members when iling is substantially exhausted. v

The invention and novel features thereof will best be made clear from the following description and accompanying drawing of one good form thereof. l

In the drawing:-

Fig. 1 is a top plan view showing the relation of the parts as the feeler is moved frontwardly by a working supply of lling on a detecting beat;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the relation of parts when the feeler partakes of its side slipping movement;

Fig, 3 is a side view of the feeler looking in the direction of the arrow, Fig. l; and

Fig. 4 is an end view of the feeler mechanism looking in the direction of the arrow in Fig. 3.

The feeler stand as shown, comprises the top plate 1 and bottom plate 2 which are held in separated relation by spacing blocks 3, and in order to hold the feeler in position on the loom frame the lower plate 2 is provided with a bridge por- 60 tion 4 having a depression 5 to receive the head of a bolt 6 which may be set up on the loom frame by the nut 7.

The feeler comprises a heel 8 and an offset filling engaging end 9 having the usual teeth 10 65 for engagement with the lling. As shown in the present instance of the invention, the feeler and fe-eler heel have movement between the two plates 1 and 2, and secured to the feeler heel is an actuator 11 which is secured in the present instance 70 with the feeler heel by means of a bolt 12 which extends upwardly from the feeler and passes through a slot 13 so that the feeler may partake of its frontward and its rearward movements without obstruction.

Associated with the actuator 11 are the side wing portions 14, which on rearward movement of the feeler, hereinafter to be described, engages stops 15 at the rear of the feeler stand, whereby the rearward movement of the feeler into filling feeling position is determined.

The actuator 11, as shown in the present instance of the invention, extends frontwardly from the feeler heel and may be associated with any form of transmitting mechanism to initiate nlling replenishment when the feeler partakes of its side slipping movement.

The feeler heel 8 is provided with the inclined surfaces 16 which diverge rearwardly, as indicated more clearly in Fig. 2. Such inclined surfaces on the heel of the feeler may be variously contrived but, as shown, they extend from about the central portion vof the heel at its front and diverge rearwardly, Fig. 2.

In accordance with the present invention the feeler is under control of feeler controlling means constituted by arms pivotally mounted on the feeler stand preferably at the front and the rearwardly extending arms of the controlling inembers preferably cross each other so that the end portions of the arms rest upon the two inclined surfaces of the feeler heel.

As shown the feeler controlling members 17 and 18 are pivotally mounted on the feeler stand respectively at 19 and 20 and their rearwardly extending arms are crossed, as shown in Fig. 2, and bear upon the inclined surface of the feeler heel.

It is within the contemplation of the present invention that the feeler controlling members constituted generally as stated, shall be yieldingly held against the inclined surface of the feeler heel and to this end each of the feeling controlling members 17 and 18 has a frontwardly extending hook 2l and a spring 22 engages the hooks frontward of the pivotal mounting of the controlling members, with the result that the rearwardly extending arms of the controlling members are yieldingly held against the incline of the feeler heel. The spring means for effecting this characteristic of the feeler controlling members may be variously contrived but, as herein shown, is a good practical embodiment of this feature of the invention, since it serves, first, to hold the rearwardly extending arms of the controlling members in yielding engagement with the inclined surface of the feeler heel; second, to .eifect rearward movement of the feeler after it has been displaced frontwardly on a detecting beat by a working supply of iilling in the shuttle; and, third, permit side slipping movement of the feeler about one of the arms of the controlling members when the feeler detects substantial exhaustion of filling in the shuttle on a detecting beat.

As indicated in Fig. 1 by full lines, it will be noted that the feeler has been moved frontwardly by a working supply of filling in the shuttle without partaking of its side slippingmovement and that the controlling members 17 and 18 are separated as the feeler moves frontwardly and against the tension of the spring 22, and since the rearwardly extending arms of the controlling members are in contact with the inclined surfaces of the feeler heel, the spring 22 or its equivalent will cause the feeler to be moved rearwardly into feeling position by the arms of the feeler controlling members as the lay goes back.

In the practical operation of a side slipping feeler it is not unusual for the substantially exhausted filling in the shuttle to cause the feeler to move frontwardly to some amount on a detecting beat while at the same time or subsequently partaking of its side slipping movement, This condition is represented in Fig. 2 on an exaggerated scale.

Should the feeler move frontwardly before partaking of its side slipping movement, as indicated, the heel of the feeler, of course, will likewise move frontwardly and cause a slight separation of the spring actuated controlling members 17 and 18 and will then partake of the side slipping movement about the end of the controlling member 18, for instance. In other words, the inclined surfaces on the heel of the feeler which are normally pinched by the free ends of the controlling members 17 and 18 serve not only to move the feeler into its rearward feeling position, but one of the controlling members will act as a fulcrum about which the feeler turns on its side slipping movement.

Should the feeler be not moved frontwardly on detection of substantial exhaustion of filling one of the controlling members will still act as a fulcrum about which the feeler may side slip or the end of the feeler heel may be located at such times between the end of the controlling members 18 and the associated stop 15.

As will be noted from Figs. 1 and 2 the stops 15 kare mounted in transversely extending slots in the feeler stand with the result that these stops may be adjusted towards and away from each other as occasion may dictate.

It may at times be desired to adjust the feeler relative to the actuating member 11 and to this end a slot 23 is formed in the feeler heel 8 so that by loosening the bolt 12 the desired adjustment of the filling feeling end of the feeler may be changed.

One of the features of the present invention which commends itself in practice is the ready means whereby the energy of the spring action upon the controlling members 17 and 18 may be changed. This is effected in the present instance of the invention by a change spring 22 which being located at the front of the feeler stand is in ready accessible position. In any event the feeler controlling members 17 and v18 bear yieldingly upon the two inclined surfaces 16 of the feeler heel and by their pinching action serve to move the feeler into rearward feeling position and yet permit the feeler to side swipe about one of said controlling members, 18 in the present instance, as a fulcrum.

The feeler mechanism of the present invention is peculiarly sensitive both to the presence or substantial absence of filling in the shuttle on a detecting beat, with the result that waste of filling will be minimized on call by the feeler mechanism for replenishment.

1. In a filling feeler mechanism for looms, the combination of a feeler stand, a side slipping feeler mounted on the feeler stand for movement towards and from the front of the loom and comprising a heel having inclined surfaces diverging towards the rear of the loom, and an offset filling engaging end, two feeler controlling members pivotally mounted at opposite sides of the feeler stand and having rearwardly extending arms, yielding means acting upon the controlling members to cause one of the rearwardly extending arms to slidably engage one of the heel molines and the other arm to engage the other of the heel inclines, and a frontwardly extending actuator secured to the feeler.

2. In a filling feeler mechanism for looms, the combination of a feeler stand, a side slipping feeler mounted upon the feeler stand for movement towards and from the front of the loom and comprising a heel having rearwardly diverging inclined surfaces and an offset lling engaging end, two feeler controlling members pivotally mounted on the feeler stand and each having a rearwardly extending arm to engage between them the diverging inclined surfaces of the heel, and means normally acting to yieldingly exert a force upon the rearwardly extending arms of the feeler controlling members tending to move them towards each other into engagement with the inclinedV surface of the heel.

3. In a filling feeler mechanism for looms, the

combination of a feeler stand, a side slipping feeler mounted upon the feeler stand for movement towards and from the front of the loom and comprising a heel having rearwardly diverging inclined surfaces and an offset filling engaging end, two feeler controlling members pivotally mounted on the feeler stand and each having a rearwardly extending arm crossing the other to engage bel tween them the diverging inclined surfaces of the heel, and means normally acting to yieldingly exert a force upon the rearwardly extending arms of the feeler controlling members tending to move them towards each other into engagement with the inclined surfaces of the heel.

4. In a filling feeler mechanism for looms, the combination of a feeler stand, a feeler mounted on the stand for side slipping and movement towards and from the front of the loom and com-, prising a heel portion and an offset filling engagias ing end, the heel portion having rearwardly diverging inclines, feeler controlling members mounted on the feeler stand and having rearwardly extending crossing arms, a spring for yieldingly moving the arms towards each other and into embracing engagement with the rearwardly diverging inclines of the feeler heel and acting to return the feeler to rearward position after having been frontwardly displaced.

5. In a filling feeler mechanism for looms, the combination of a feeler stand, a feeler mounted on the stand for side slipping and movement towards and from the front of the loom and cornprising a heel portion and an offset lling engaging end, feeler controlling members having rearwardly extending arms for engaging the opposite end portions of the feeler heel, and spring means normally acting to move the arms yieldingly into engagement with the feeler heel to first, move the feeler rearwardly after having been frontwardly displaced, and second, to permit the feeler to partake of side slipping movement about one of the rearwardly extending arms as a fulcrum when the lling is substantially exhausted on a detecting beat.

6. In a filling feeler mechanism for looms, the combination of a Ieeler stand, a eeler mounted on the stand for side slipping and movement towards and from the front of the loom and comprising a heel portion and an offset filling engaging end, feeler controlling members having rearwardly extending arms for engaging the opposite end portions of the feeler heel, and spring means normally acting to move the arms yieldingly into engagement with the feeler heel to rst, move the feeler rearwardly after having been irontwardly displaced, and second, to permit the feeler to partake of side slipping movement about one of the rearwardly extending arms as a fulcrum when the lling is substantially exhausted on a detecting beat, an actuator secured to the feeler and having side wings, and stops on the feeler stand for engagement by said wings as the -feeler is returned to rearward position.

7. In a feeler mechanism for looms, the combination of a feeler stand, a feeler having a heel provided with oppositely inclined surfaces, twoy feeler controlling members pivotally mounted on the feeler stand and having their front portions provided with hooks, and a spring acting through the hooks of the feeler controlling members to cause the rear ends of the controlling members to bear upon the oppositely inclined surfaces of the feeler heel and by their pinching action to move the feeler to its rearward feeling position.

ARTHUR E. BENSON. 

